The 25 Best Reality TV Stars of 2012

Reality television may not be what's referred to as "quality" viewing, but there's no use in denying it: Shows like Keeping Up With the Kardashians are everybody's guilty pleasure. We're confident enough to admit that we've often found ourselves enthralled in some reality series marathon on Bravo or TLC. Also, we know more about all of The Real Housewives than we probably should. It's OK, there's no judging here. Reality television is popular, and it's here to stay.

On top of being a guilty pleasure, however, it's also quite fascinating. Many reality shows follow a group of people who weren't initially famous, and very quickly these regular people are catapulted to fame for no reason other than the fact that they let cameras follow them around on a daily basis. The masses become obsessed, and suddenly you find yourself at dinner parties and bars alike talking about last week's fight on Basketball Wives like it was a poignant scene from a Martin Scorsese film.

When it comes to the faces of these shows, most of them built their celebrity statuses upon their raging tempers, so they're the type of personality you end up loving to hate. But there are a few of them who are actually well-liked for being generally cool people. Or, as we'd like to refer to them, The 25 Best Reality TV Stars of 2012. Let's be real: If the world doesn't end on December 21st, these folks will be the ones that future pop culture enthusiasts look back upon to define our generation.